Trying Out Vegan Moussaka

Lots of people wonder "what do we eat" when we have FH?! First off, what we eat doesn't seem to really make a difference, for better or worse. But I personally don't want to add to the badness by eating more stuff that makes me add fat to my arteries. 

I have eaten meat all my life. But as I grow older and sicker, I choose to eat leaner, closer to "natural" and lighter in fats. At least in the animal ones. 

For many other (new) health reasons lately, those who follow this blog more or less frequently know that I am eating vegan and soy free food lately. 

One of my friends asked me this weekend if "I have a new cookbook". Maybe I should write one - because there is no vegan, soy free cook book that I can find. But I come up with recipes that would fit that description every day.

Tonight, I was craving moussaka. I have made this dish all my life - I grew up eating it, but it always has lots of oil and lots of meat in it. I have made it with turkey in my own home, but turkey is off limits for me now. But the one I made tonight, totally invented by me, turned out so delicious that I just had to share. I did use a teaspoon and a half of low fat oil, as follows.

So, this is what I did:

- in a pot, I boiled 4 potatoes just in plain water
- in a (ceramic) pan (so it won't stick!), I sauteed in one teaspoon of canola oil in this order: onions, celery, garlic, cubed fresh tomatoes till everything was a sauce;
- for spices: salt, pepper, Italian herb mix and just any kind of dry herb seasoning you have handy (little salt, and all natural, if you have some); 
- I added to the pan chickpeas ground in a food processor (this is my meat substitute);
- when the potatoes were boiled but still had a bite to them, I peeled them and sliced them in thin slices
- I "lined" a casserole dish (9 X 12 in Pyrex dish) with a drop of grape seed garlic oil (put some on a paper towel and smear it on the bottom and the sides of the dish);
- I put one layer of sliced potatoes, then covered it with the vegetable mix; then repeated - potatoes and chickpea and veggie mix; finish with loose potatoes and add olives on the top
- pour a small can of no salt added tomato sauce and add some water, so the potatoes can finish boiling;
- put the dish in the oven for about 30 minutes on 425F.

I did not miss the meat one bit. I never do anymore, but this is the first time I made the moussaka without meat and it made no difference - the craving was met. My meat eating husband loved it, too. He said it was "creamy" because of the chickpeas. 

I hope you try it and let me know what you think. Or just enjoy it!